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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stock · bass · ruler · degree · saw · leaves · wind · bay

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. stock — goods
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. stock — shares
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. wind — moving air
  9. saw — the tool
  10. degree — from a university
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. saw — the tool
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. wind — moving air
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. degree — temperature
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. bass — low music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com